Racers Outlast Bruins – Moore Scores 25 - Murray State University Athletics

Wednesday, February 1

Murray, Ky.

7 p.m.

Murray State

13-10,8-5MVC

Belmont

16-8,9-4MVC

Belmont

Murray St.

Photo by: (c) {year 4} David Eaton

Racers Outlast Bruins – Moore Scores 25

2/1/2023 7:10:00 PM | Men's Basketball

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In the highest scoring game this season in The Valley, the Racers nipped Belmont at the wire

The Murray State Racers came away with an 83-82 victory over the Belmont Bruins at the CFSB Center in Murray, Ky.

The Racers (13-10) pushed their mark in the Missouri Valley Conference to 8-5. After Wednesday's play, the MVC has eight teams within one game as a very competitive 2022-23 season continues. MSU hits the road this weekend for a Saturday 3 p.m. game in Terre Haute against Indiana State.

Brian Moore, Jr., scored a career-high 25 points on 10-of-14 from the field, while MSU got 14 points from Kenny White, Jr. and 13 and 12 points from Rob Perry and DJ Burns.

The game came down to free throws and one defensive stop to make the first team to 80 points, Murray State, a one-point winner. While the normally solid Racers made just 1-of-4 from the free throw line in the final 22 seconds, Belmont's Ben Sheppard raced down the floor and missed at the buzzer and the Racers held on 83-82.

While the Racers were scoring their best first half score of the season (49 points) against a Division-I opponent, they used a 16-3 run in a period of 5:17 to go from five points down to 10-up (33-23) with 6:46 in the half. Moore and White combined to hit their first seven shots of the game to help the Racers to a 49-43 lead at the halftime intermission.

How wild was the first half? The Racers hit 57 percent from the field (20-of-35), while the Bruins hit 48 percent (15-31), the two combined for 14-of-25 from the 3-point line for 56 percent.

Game Notes

The 165 total points scored by the Racers and Bruins is the highest-scoring game this season in MVC play, one point better than the 164 scored in Illinois State's 87-77 win over the Bruins (Dec. 4).
The Racers are 9-1 at home this season and 24-1 at The Bank in the last two seasons.
This may be the closest the Racers have ever gotten to having two players notch a triple-double with Moore and Jacobi Wood having great games.
Moore's line was 25pts/6reb/5a, while Wood was 8pts/8reb/8a.
Moore was inserted into the starting line-up five games ago and his numbers are impressive.
In five games for Moore as a starter: 17.0PPG, 31-55FG (.564), 7-11 3PT (.636), 16-21 FT (.762), 3.4 RPG, 10A.
The Racers allowed nine 3-pointers to Belmont in the first half and trimmed it to four in the second half.
MSU's 49 points in the first half is their season-high against a Division-I opponent. Their previous best was 41 points against Tulsa (Nov. 20) at the Myrtle Beach Classic.